icebreaker
noun
ice·break·er
ˈīs-ˌbrā-kər 
1
: a ship equipped (as with a reinforced bow) to make and maintain a channel through ice
2
: something that is done or said to get through the first difficulties in starting a conversation or discussion
Roughly half of all Americans are invested in the market these days, and stock holdings have replaced politics, weather and sports as the go-to conversational icebreaker.—
Adam Bryant
Adam Bryant… she also pays particular attention to icebreakers that relax guests and get them rubbing elbows, such as a cruise up the Colorado River, where guests nibble on hors d'oeuvres and sip Fall Creek wines.—Steve Heimoff
see also break the ice at break entry 1
Steve HeimoffExamples of icebreaker in a Sentence
using an old joke as a conversational icebreaker
Recent Examples on the Web
My friend was so sour about my community icebreakers.
—Harriette Cole, Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2025
It was meant to be a friendly, low-stakes icebreaker; explained as an activity that Maezawa and his team frequently played together.
—Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 31 Mar. 2025
An adequate European presence requires basing more infrastructure, rapid-reaction capabilities, reliable communications, and most urgently, icebreakers there.
—Michael E. O’Hanlon, Foreign Affairs, 18 Mar. 2025
Trump also announced plans to order 48 icebreakers, noting that Russia currently has 40.
—Hannah Parry, Newsweek, 13 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for icebreaker
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Harriette Cole, Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2025
It was meant to be a friendly, low-stakes icebreaker; explained as an activity that Maezawa and his team frequently played together.
—Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 31 Mar. 2025
An adequate European presence requires basing more infrastructure, rapid-reaction capabilities, reliable communications, and most urgently, icebreakers there.
—Michael E. O’Hanlon, Foreign Affairs, 18 Mar. 2025
Trump also announced plans to order 48 icebreakers, noting that Russia currently has 40.
—Hannah Parry, Newsweek, 13 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for icebreaker
Cite this Entry
“Icebreaker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/icebreaker. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
icebreaker
noun
ice·break·er
-ˌbrā-kər
1
: a ship equipped to make and keep open a channel through ice
2
: something (as a joke or game) that makes one feel more at ease and less reserved (as at a party or meeting)
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